In the past five years, the California International Marathon (CIM) has doubled in size. It is now the 15th largest marathon in the country with 8,000 marathoners and an additional 4,000 runners who take part in the race’s four-person relay. Race organizers recently raised the cap from 7,500 to 8,000.

“We could have kept going,” said race director John Mansoor. “People have called kind of nonstop.”

The race is famous for its fast times, which is one of its key selling points. Race officials have also been taking part in a campaign to advertise the marathon by visiting race expos in other cities.

Duncan Larkin

Duncan Larkin is a freelance journalist and author who’s been covering the sport of running for over a decade. He’s run 2:32 in the marathon and won the Himalayan 100-Mile Stage Race in 2007. He wrote the book RUN SIMPLE, and coaches runners of all abilities.
You can learn more about him here: http://roadsmillslaps.tumblr.com/about